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\nOpening Thursday, January 29, 2026, AP Gorny: Different From the Rest demonstrates what becomes possible when a library turns its archival methodology toward art historical recovery. Curator Heather Gring deploys a library’s distinctive tools: oral history collection, institutional archive excavation, and the rigorous practices that document an enigmatic figure through the kaleidoscope of his life experience.<\/p>\n
\nWhat emerges is a portrait of mid-century artistic formation\u2014a Polish-American artist from Buffalo’s East Side who found his way to Yale’s School of Art, then built an international career while the mechanisms that typically document such trajectories failed to capture him. His work traveled to major collections; the narrative of how and why remained unwritten.<\/p>\n
\nHere, the library’s archival practice becomes artistic methodology. Using oral histories, digitized materials from Buffalo’s cultural institutions, and the artist’s own work, the Library constructs what traditional art history overlooked\u2014an artist formed in a specific place and moment, working outside established channels. An artist navigating his identity as a gay man in the cultural landscape of the 1980s and 1990s \u2013 decades marked by the AIDS crisis, a profound loss in artists, and shifts in visibility \u2013 Gorny’s trajectory likewise bears the marks of artistic resistance, survival, and fierce community.<\/p>\n
\nThe exhibition features 11 artist books by Gorny, newly-acquired for the Library’s Rare Book collection, as well as prints and artworks loaned for the show. In partnership with Western New York Book Arts Center<\/a> \u2013 a community-based arts organization dedicated to preserving and advancing printmaking and the book arts through education, collaboration, and public access \u2013 the exhibit expands to their space in late February with works unable to be displayed at Central Library. This joint exhibition will open with a special, evening celebration connecting both spaces Friday, February 27. It runs through Saturday, March 21, 2026.<\/p>\n \nAP Gorny: Different From the Rest demonstrates how libraries can function as sites of art historical recovery, using archival tools to highlight careers that exist at the margins of traditional documentation.<\/p>\n \nThe Buffalo & Erie County Public Library is one of only 25 major U.S. public library systems\u2014alongside New York Public, Boston Public, and the Free Library of Philadelphia\u2014with a dedicated Rare Book Collection. The Library serves as steward to Mark Twain’s handwritten Adventures of Huckleberry Finn manuscript, gifted by Twain himself, and a complete Shakespeare First Folio. The acquisition of Gorny\u2019s works extends and enriches that mandate: positioning artist books not as peripheral objects, but as essential creative records deserving the same archival rigor and public interest as rare manuscripts and first editions.<\/p>\n \nThis exhibition was generously made possible by the support of Rigidized Metals, which fabricated and donated in-kind custom display systems for Gorny’s work, and future exhibitions at the Central Library.<\/p>\n \nRare Book Room Exhibition \u2013 Opening Celebration<\/p>\n \nOpening: Thursday, January 29, 2026, 5:30\u20138:00 p.m. \nWNY Book Arts Center x Buffalo & Erie County Public Library \u2013 Joint Celebration<\/p>\n \nFriday, February 27, 2026, 6:00 -9:00 p.m. \nJoint Exhibition \u2013 Western New York Book Arts Center<\/p>\n \nOpening Friday, February 27, 2026 \nFree and open to the public.<\/p>\n \nAbout the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library<\/p>\n \nEstablished in 1836, the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library is Buffalo\u2019s oldest cultural institution. Profoundly Public in all we do, the Library serves more than 2.35 million visitors annually through 37 branches and mobile services. The Library also houses over 3.2 million resources, extensive digital collections, and innovative programming. With a collection of international and national note, the Library continues to significantly impact community education, equity, and cultural enrichment. In 2024, every dollar invested returned $4.32 in community benefits, totaling over $128 million in annual value. To explore resources and services, visit www.BuffaloLib.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n \nMEDIA \/ INTERVIEWS:
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On view through Fall 2026.
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Rare Book Room, Buffalo & Erie County Public Library
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1 Lafayette Square, Buffalo.<\/p>\n
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Western New York Book Arts Center
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468 Washington Street, Buffalo.
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After-Hours Library Tour Registration: Contact Below.
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Space is Limited; Walking Required.<\/p>\n
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On view through Saturday, March 21, 2026.
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Western New York Book Arts Center
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468 Washington Street, Buffalo.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Sean Piazza, Marketing Manager
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PiazzaS@buffalolib.org<\/a><\/p>\n